Introduction: In my youth I was taught the entire Bible, not just the
New Testament. The Old Testament was about keeping the law, the New
Testament was about Jesus. My impression was that the two testaments
were much different. The Old emphasized salvation by works and the
New emphasized salvation through Jesus. It was only later in life
that I started seriously considering the Old Testament method for
eliminating sin. It was not a series of works. You did not need to
suffer in some way to make up for (atone for) your sins. Rather, an
animal was killed to take away your sins. The Old Testament, like the
New, taught the forgiveness of sins by a substitute death. This week
our study is about what Jesus, following the Old Testament symbolism,
is presently doing on our behalf to remove our sins. Let’s plunge
into our study of the Bible!
- The Melchizedeck Model
- Read Hebrews 7:1-3. What job positions did Melchizedek
hold? (He was both a king and a priest of the true God.) - Based on your knowledge of the Bible, how common is
this? (It never happened among God’s people. They
were led by prophets until they demanded a king.
Thereafter, the king was never a priest. In this way,
God separated “church and state” among His people.) - What do we know about this priest-king named
Melchizedek? (Almost nothing outside his interaction
with Abraham.) - Do you think that Melchizedek literally, like Jesus,
remains a priest forever? If so, we have two eternal
priests, Jesus and Melchizedek! (Commentators
believe, and I agree, that the writer of Hebrews
merely means that, unlike the typical Levitical
priesthood, we know virtually nothing about
Melchizedek. We don’t know his genealogy, when he was
born or when he died. If this is not written
symbolically then we have a new deity of some sort to
which Abraham gave his allegiance!- never created and
without end. That is inconsistent with the rest of
the Bible.) - Read Hebrews 7:11-16. Why do you think the writer of
Hebrews highlights Melchizedek? (The point is not to make
Melchizedek a God, but rather to point out Biblical
precedent for a “king-priest” who was not born out of the
tribe of Levi. Although much of the comparison between
Melchizedek and Jesus is symbolic, the writer’s point is
that Jesus is our King and our High Priest even though He
was not descended from Levi.) - Jesus Our High Priest
- Read Hebrews 7:26-28. What is the advantage over the
Levitical High Priests of Jesus being our High Priest?
(Jesus is not a sinful man. Jesus only needed to make one
sacrifice on our behalf, the sacrifice of Himself.) - Read Hebrews 8:1-2. What is Jesus doing right now? (He is
serving as our High Priest.) - Where is He doing this? (In heaven!)
- Read Hebrews 8:3-5. What do we learn about the design of
the sanctuary in heaven? (It is like the sanctuary that
God directed Moses to make.) - How much are the two alike? (What we had on earth was
a “shadow,” but nevertheless a copy, of the sanctuary
in heaven.) - How long has a sanctuary been in heaven? (This
suggests that it was in heaven when Moses was
alive.) - Why? The logical problem is timing: this
is before Jesus died on our behalf. (The
logical answer must be that the sanctuary
in heaven serves more than the single
purpose of Jesus’ present work dealing
with our sin problem. Exodus 25:8-9 gives
us a hint about that. It tells us that God
directed the creation of the sanctuary on
earth so that God could dwell with us.
Heaven’s original may also be God’s
dwelling place.) - Read Hebrews 9:11-14. How much better is Jesus’ present
work on our behalf? (Jesus offers Himself on our behalf,
which will “cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to
death, so that we may serve the Living God.”) - What stands out to you in that section I just quoted?
(I like that my conscience is now clear – it has been
cleansed. My path is no longer the one leading to
death. This allows me to serve God.) - Covenant Work
- Read Hebrews 9:15. This refers to Jesus dying for our sins
under the “first covenant,” but says that He is the
Mediator “of a new covenant.” A covenant is a contract, do
we have a new contract? If so, what terms have changed? - Let’s examine this new covenant a bit more. Read Hebrews
8:10-12. What is the timing for this? (Verse 10 simply
says, “after that time.” It refers back to the time of the
first covenant. Because Hebrews tells us that Jesus is
currently mediating the new covenant, it must also include
now.) - We are told that God will put His laws in our minds
and write them on our hearts. We are also told that
we don’t need people like me – teachers! What does
this mean? (Primarily, the coming of the Holy Spirit
in power fulfills this role. See, John 16:7-13. If
this time period has no end, then it may also refer
to heaven, where God makes us new so that we no
longer have a sinful fallen nature.) - Read Hebrews 10:1-4. Do you recall that we read (Hebrews
8:5) that the sanctuary on earth was merely a “shadow” of
the sanctuary in heaven? What other shadow do we find
here? (The law is a “shadow” of the good things to come.) - What is that “good thing?” (Our current covenant –
Jesus in the heavenly sanctuary offering Himself for
our sins.) - Study carefully what these verses say the law could
not do, but which it suggests our new contract can.
Does the new arraignment make us “cleansed once for
all [time]?” - Read Hebrews 10:11-14. My mental picture about Jesus’ work
has been that He is in the sanctuary every day mediating
for us. What do these verses make clear? (Jesus’ work is
not like that of the human priests. Jesus made “one
sacrifice for sins” and then “He sat down at the right
hand of God.” He now “waits for His enemies to be made His
footstool.” The One who created the universe by speaking
has finished His work on our behalf.) - Several times in this study I’ve referred to Jesus
being in heaven and mediating on our behalf. Is this
wrong, since these verses tell us that Jesus offered
“one sacrifice” and now is sitting down waiting?
Should we say that Jesus is currently “waiting,” not
mediating on our behalf in heaven? (A couple of
points are clear. Jesus’ one sacrifice is sufficient.
I know that I keep sinning and I’m not the only one.
The application of Jesus mediating work continues in
some way.) - Re-read Hebrews 10:14. What does “made perfect forever”
mean? Does it mean that our current and future sins are
forgiven, and Jesus is truly waiting rather than
mediating? Isn’t that sense reflected in Hebrews 10:2?
(Two things: First, the focus in these texts is on the
character of the High Priest and the nature of the
sacrifice. It is not on the nature of the humans seeking
atonement for their sins. However, the second
consideration is that the text plainly says that sinners
are being made “perfect forever.” On balance, I think the
“perfect forever” refers mainly to the lasting power and
perfection of what Jesus has done. Otherwise, the line
from the Lord’s Prayer “forgive us our sins” ( Luke 11:2)
would make no sense as a regular prayer. It would only
need to be said once.) - Why does Hebrews 10:14 go on to refer to us “being
made holy?” (Jesus saved us by His life, death,
resurrection and heavenly High Priest work. It is
righteousness by faith alone. Righteousness by faith
makes us perfect for salvation because God considers
Jesus’ righteousness, not ours. However, the Holy
Spirit works with us every day to move us forward on
the road to holiness. Our lives are deemed perfect,
but they need improvement.) - Confidence
- Read Hebrews 10:19-22. How many illusions to the earthly
Day of Atonement do you see? (One of the most important is
that we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place.
Leviticus 16:2 tells us that if the High Priest entered
the Most Holy Place (behind the curtain) whenever he
wanted, that he would die. We do not need to fear death.) - Read Hebrews 10:23-25. How should this confidence in your
salvation affect your life? Should you decide that it
does not matter how you live? (It should spur us “on
toward love and good deeds.”) - Does that make sense to you? If you are “made
perfect” isn’t the natural result to care less about
your actions? (Read Hebrews 10:26-29. When we
consider the terrible sacrifice Jesus made on our
behalf, we will be motivated to reject sin.) - Friend, Jesus paid a terrible penalty for your sins. His
sacrifice and His work in the heavenly sanctuary give you
eternal life. Show respect and gratitude for what Jesus
has done. Decide right now, with the power of the Holy
Spirit, to live a life in accord with God’s will. - Next week: The “Change” of the Law.
